More bad news for the struggling Dallas Mavericks as the sixth all-time leading scorer Dirk Nowitzki will miss more time with a lingering sore Achilles. Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle broke the news after their 105-95 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.
"Is it bad news?" said Carlisle. " Yes. It's bad news but we'll get through it. We've gone through some periods like this before, but his health is the most important," he added.
Carlisle said Nowitzki didn't reinjure the Achilles, it's just lingering and not getting better. Nowitzki already missed two games due to a soreness in his Achilles. He came back in their game against the Utah Jazz and then played just 16 minutes in their game against the Blazers because of the Achilles.
"It felt better after a couple of days of not doing anything," said Nowitzki. "But as soon as I got back out there with the cutting and the showing and the quick changing of direction, it went right back to feeling the same," explained the Mavericks player.
The Mavericks have lost their first five games of the season and are off to the worst start in franchise history. With Nowitzki out, Carlisle will have to look elsewhere for scoring production.
New addition Harrison Barnes should pick up the scoring load while J.J. Barea should shoulder the playmaking responsibilities as Deron Williams is out with a calf injury. Wes Matthews, their best perimeter defender and one of the best shooters in the NBA in recent seasons, should also get out of his shooting slump fast if the Mavericks want to get more wins.
Barnes and Barea had to play heavy minutes, 48 and 46 minutes respectively, against the Milwaukee Bucks, who are also off to an underwhelming start, to give the Mavericks their first win. Barnes scored a career-high 34 points while Barea had 21 points, six rebounds, and six assists, including a clutch 3-pointer in overtime.
The Dallas Mavericks are not setting a timetable for Nowitzki's return so Carlisle will have to make do with what he has for now to get wins.
